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Johannesburg - The rand was a fraction softer in
afternoon trade on Friday tracking the euro, ahead of crucial EU bank
stress test results.
At
15:28 local time the rand was bid at R7.4578 to the dollar from R7.4347 at Thursday's close.
It was bid at R9.5465 to the euro from R9.5829 before and at R11.4624 against
the sterling from R11.3357 at its previous close.
The euro was bid at $1.2813 from $1.2917 overnight.
A
local dealer said: "The rand has come off its earlier gains tracking a weaker euro, but it
is nothing to get excited about as we wait for the results of bank
stress test results in Europe."
Dow Jones Newswires reports the euro is steady on Friday after giving back its overnight gains
against the dollar as investors await the results of stress tests for
European banks, due at noon ET.
The tests,
which gauge whether Europe's banking sector has sufficient capital, are the
day's biggest event, and the outcome could determine the directions of the
euro as well as the dollar next week, said analysts.
"People
find it hard to imagine how the stress tests will be good news," said Simon Smollet,
senior foreign exchange options strategist at Credit Agricole CIB in
London.
If
too many banks fail, it could spark panic about the health of the eurozone banking
sector; if too many banks pass, markets may discount the tests as not
credible.
"It's
easy for people to be deeply cynical about this exercise," said Smollet.
"They're looking for the worst out of this."
- I-Net Bridge